The S-Class Hunter Doesn’t Want To Be A Villain Princess

Click here to read chapters 1-15.

Chapter 16

That’s how she came to the tiger’s den, the Capital.

As Rene made her way to the villa of the Duke of Marchius in the Capital, she simply thought it was a two-story building when hearing it being referred to as ‘villa.’ Quite literally, a ‘villa,’ isn’t it? However, that thought shattered into pieces as soon as she arrived at the ‘villa.’

‘What kind of villa is this big?’

The mansion in the Capital was slightly smaller than the ducal estate, but it was by no means referred to as a ‘villa.’ Moreover, her room was just as spacious as the rooms in the Duke’s residence.

“My lady, your luggage has already been placed inside your room, so you can take a rest.”

Perhaps it’s because it’s not seen often, but the butler is much friendlier compared to the butler at the estate.

The butler at the Duke’s residence tends to openly ignore her. Of course, his words and actions were polite, but the underlying contempt was evident.

‘You can see how annoying this proud and hot-tempered person must be.’(TN: aka Rene)

“What about father?”
“His Excellency the Duke is currently attending a meeting with the ministers. He will probably be back in the evening, miss.”
“Okay. Let me know right away as soon as he arrives.”
“Understood, miss.”

Rene immediately locked the door as soon as the butler left. The reason for that was-

     [The <Monarch of Waves and Healing> wants to share something they discovered with you!]

It was because of this, an item she requested from her Constellation.

‘Rene’s diary.’

Why didn’t she think of this earlier? No, it’s just that she couldn’t imagine that Rene would be the type to keep a diary.

But after hearing Cyril’s words, she suddenly had a thought that Rene might have kept a diary. People who have a lot of grievances always need a place to confide in.

‘Since it didn’t look like Rene had anyone to confide in, she probably poured out her feelings in a place like this.’

It was something she could relate to as well. Even though she cared for and liked her guild members in her past life, she didn’t fully trust them.

“Where did she hide this?”

     [The <Monarch of Waves and Healing> testifies that it was inside the bed mattress!]

“Is it just there? Why couldn’t she at least be more meticulous about it?”

It’s fortunate that it hasn’t been discovered until now. She opened the diary and began reading the most recent entry.

            ‘… Why doesn’t anyone believe me? I’ve never laid a hand on Lian.
            Even Father, who claims to trust me, doesn’t seem to truly believe it.
            Where on earth has Lian disappeared to?’

She must have been feeling lonely. The words were all shaking. The ink was smudged and dried in places.
She continued flipping through the pages.

            ‘I shouldn’t have said that back then. I shouldn’t have said that I sent poison to the Saintess. But Thalia kept provoking me, so I couldn’t help it.’
 
…Thalia? I should look into her as well.

            ‘Lian is really annoying.
            She’s always pretending to be nice.
            Yesterday, she invited me to have tea together, but she only had one sip and left.
            I had to force a smile and finish it myself, but it’s really frustrating.’
 
            ‘Lian keeps making cakes for me just to try out her new oven.
            She said she knew it wasn’t me who sent the assassin.
            As if she knows something.
            I didn’t have time to send one, that’s why I didn’t, but I laughed when she mentioned it. Why does Ishir really like her?
            She’s just an idiot.’
 
What? Lian… knew that Rene wasn’t the one behind the assassination attempt?

‘The two of them seemed to have a closer relationship than I thought?’

Although Rene wrote that she didn’t like her, but looking at Rene’s diary, Lian seemed to be her only friend. Seeing that she met Lian without fail every week, it becomes even more apparent.

            ‘In the end, I couldn’t refuse Lian’s request to meet today either. Still, to avoid being seen together, we agreed to meet secretly. I made sure to be careful with Lian’s surveillance. No one must have seen us, right?’
 
            ‘The Archbishop seems suspicious. It was really strange when he tried to touch me last time. It seems like it wasn’t just me.’
 
            ‘I got angry with Lian. I shouldn’t have done that. She kept insisting on being there, which made me emotional.
            Why am I such a mess?’
 
            ‘I suggested to Lian that we should keep a distance, but she refused.
            She said Ishir doesn’t love her. Ishir doesn’t love anyone.’
 
The contents are getting more and more….

Rene closed the diary and quietly stared at the cover. If this diary is true, then the content completely changes everything. Lian and Rene didn’t have a bad relationship. In fact, Lian was her only friend.

‘If this had been known in the first place, then Rene wouldn’t have been falsely accused of being the culprit.’

She must have been a little immature at best, not a villain. People just wanted to believe that she was a villain.

‘And it’s clear that Lian’s disappearance wasn’t a coincidence.’

Someone must have killed her, it couldn’t have been suicide. If it were, her suicide note wouldn’t have blamed Ishir and Rene for her death. Ishir seemed to know nothing, and Rene seems like she was trying to help Lian.

‘He’s a really despicable person.’

[The <Lord of Vile Blood> confirms the full story of the incident and spews blood.]
[The <Monarch of Waves and Healing> is feeling down, and a typhoon is coming.]
[The <Emperor of Enticement> claims that the devils are not us but these bastards.]

Originally, Lee Young was never a good person. She didn’t believe in the goodness of people.
Even when someone claimed to be human, she would be suspicious of them.
However, her long life of regression made her plunged deeper into the swamp of distrust. Distrust gradually turned into hatred. And then, just when that hatred seemed to fade away, something happened-

‘I fell back again.’

Why would someone want to harm such young children? One was labeled as a suicide, and the other was framed as a murder suspect.

‘What’s strange is that Lian was actually seen, and she was alone.’

Was she actually traveling with someone else? Or was someone harassing her?

‘Perhaps at first, they didn’t plan to stage it as a suicide. They probably thought they could simply cover it up as a disappearance and pin it on Rene.’

Then, after Lee Young possessed Rene, they must have been surprised to see that things have gone wrong.
That might have pushed them to resort to such extreme measures.
They might have thought that by implicating Ishir as well and causing a major scandal, they could bury their own involvement in the aftermath.

‘Then, in the first place, would the body really be Lian?’

Just because they found Lian’s ring, it doesn’t prove that the body was hers.
Even though it had traces of holy power, it could have been manipulated as well.

‘I have a gut feeling that the case isn’t over yet.’

Once the culprit is caught, all the clues will be solved. Where is the real Lian, and why did they try to tie Rene and Ishir together to make them fall?

And the real culprit is probably….

‘The person who knows the relationship between these two.’

Knowing that she is the only person who knows the truth, they framed Rene and falsely accused her to get her killed. If that’s the case, everything makes sense.

‘So you called me here.’

Because out of so many people, she’s the only one who can help, she recalled the last line of the diary.

            ‘Please, someone, help us.’
 

***
 
Thalia Cyprus was the eldest daughter of the Count of Cyprus. She wasn’t inherently a wicked person.

…or at least, that’s what she thought about herself.

‘I’m just a little mean, that’s all.’

Although people around her didn’t agree much, she didn’t care.

She possessed an adorable and lovely appearance, which she used quite well to her advantage. And with her sharp intellect and the wealth of the Cyprus family, there was nothing she lacked: fame, wealth, lovers, friends, and even parents who cared about her very much!

However, over time, she became increasingly bored.
With the mundane social circles, the life that was predetermined for her as if it were drawn, and the pathetic individuals who flattered her.

‘Is my life going to end like this after living such a boring life?’

Then, Thalia discovered something.

Rene Marchius, the famous daughter of the Duke of Marchius.

At the sight of her, the first thought that crossed Thalia’s mind was, ‘She is beautiful.’

Rene was undeniably beautiful, and it seemed like she had everything beyond what Thalia could even fathom. From her seemingly perfect family to her unattainable reputation as the noble daughter of a Duke.

However, what Thalia liked the most was that Rene was famous for being a notorious villainess.
A villainess who casually sends assassins to people she doesn’t like, and without even bothering to hide that fact!

‘I finally met someone who is similar to me!’

Thalia became excited by this realization and was filled with anticipation. She was convinced that Rene would be someone similar to her. So, Thalia believed that Rene would understand her,
 
            ‘Rene, please wait for a moment.’
 
Rene rarely ventured outside their estate, so in order to meet her, Thalia had no choice but to wait for a party to be hosted at the Marchius estate.

After waiting for several months, the grand celebration to commemorate the Grand Duke’s entry into the highest level of sword expert finally took place, and Thalia was finally able to go see Rene.
However, Thalia didn’t approach her hastily from the beginning.

Thalia waited for the moments when Rene was alone. She had the intention of confiding in her, expressing her desire to become close friends. She wanted to express her admiration for Rene and confess that she too wished to have the courage to reveal her true nature, just like Rene.

            ‘…what is it, Lian? Get out of my way.’

However, the person she had been waiting for was not a villainess.

            ‘I know that you didn’t send the poisoned tea, Rene.’
 
Thalia, who had been chasing after Rene, accidentally overheard the conversation between Rene and Lian.
And thus, she learned all the hidden truths.

            ‘I told you I sent it.’
            ‘But Rene, you don’t even know about the different types of tea because you don’t have any interest in them. So how could you have known it was my favorite tea and sent a poisoned one?’
            ‘Because I drank it!’
            ‘Then what’s the name of that tea?’

Thalia fervently wished for the name of the tea to come from Rene’s mouth.
However, Rene couldn’t answer and only shrugged off Lian’s hand.

            ‘Rene, I understand that you’re under a lot of pressure right now. The expectations your family has for you-‘
            ‘Shut up, Lian! What do you know?’
            ‘Let me help you.’
            ‘I hate your hypocrisy. Just leave me alone!’
            ‘Rene….’

Soon, there was the sound of sobbing.
Thalia realized that the sobbing wasn’t coming from Lian but from Rene herself, and she was astonished, covering her mouth in shock.
However, that shock gradually turned into contempt.

She wasn’t a villainess, she was just a weak girl.

She wasn’t someone worth admiring; she was just a prey pretending to be strong.

‘I can’t just stand by and watch that weak thing running around acting as if it’s something it’s not.’

For a while, Thalia couldn’t control her feelings of betrayal.
But then, at some point, she changed her mind. If Rene Marchius wasn’t the villainess, then there must be someone else who could take on that role.

She came to the realization that it didn’t have to be someone else; it could be Thalia Cyprus herself who could take on the role of the villainess.

So she sent assassins to Lian instead of Rene, released monsters along Lian’s path, and sabotaged Lian’s activities.
She then manipulated everything to make it appear as if Rene was responsible for it all.

It wasn’t even that difficult to accomplish.
All she had to do was to attend the Marchius’ party and deliberately provoke Rene’s temper a few times.

Thalia felt satisfied. She enjoyed the feeling of being in control, even if it meant being ruthless.
She took pleasure in the demise of Lian, who always pretended to be nice, and she relished in witnessing the downfall of the weak Rene.

However, she couldn’t find the same level of enjoyment in the current situation.

“Put your head down.”

Rene Marchius, whom she once considered weak, became a real villainess, stomping on Thalia’s head with the heel of her shoe!

“If you make a move, you can expect to lose a limb.”

 

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Hi, I will be picking up this novel, seriously. Updates will be once a week, but there’s no fixed schedule for the time being since I’ll be busy with school. If there’s no update after a week, please don’t scold me, but I’ll owe you one for the next week. Thank you for your understanding, and enjoy reading.

On the side note, I won’t change the protagonist’s name as Rene Marchius.
Also, the name of the constellations will be; Lord of Vile Blood, and Monarch of Waves and Healing. The last one though, I’m contemplating between Lord of Temptation and Emperor of Enticement. You can comment what you prefer or I’ll see what comes out often when it’s mtled.